FC Barcelona has experienced some challenges as a club, both financially and in terms of their performance on the field, in recent years. A series of high-profile transfer failures, later compounded by the pandemic, left the Bartomeu era mired in financial crisis and ultimately cast a shadow over on-field performance.
Changes in management and administration did bring stability and performance for the last two seasons, but the Catalan club is still far from where they are supposed to be and expected to be supported by the fans and President Laporta has come out backing the team to do great things in the future.
Laporta’s bold prediction
Barcelona’s La Liga title hopes received a significant boost after their emphatic 4-2 victory over Real Betis, prompting President Joan Laporta to declare the club in contention for the championship. This bold prediction comes on the heels of a dominant performance, arguably Barca’s finest of the season, where they controlled possession and chances with clinical finishing, even featuring two standout teenagers in the starting lineup.
The victory was satisfying for fans who had yearned for consistency and glimpses of the club’s famed tiki-taka style. Laporta seized the opportunity to rally the team and express his solid faith in manager Xavi. He acknowledged a shared belief with Xavi that Barca has the potential for great things in the remaining season, culminating in a serious La Liga challenge.
During the same interview, the president also talked about how the controversial refereeing decisions in the Real Madrid-Almeria match meant that the club is not able to reduce the gap at the top of the league, which was just disappointing as Ancelotti’s side weren’t supposed to win that match.
The president still believes that manager Xavi can turn things around and that the players will perform spectacularly for the remainder of the season, even if the squad is now in third place, eight points behind Girona.
Xavi’s strategic vision
Xavi was thrilled after the impressive victory against Betis, which boosted his team’s confidence for the upcoming Copa del Ray round of 16 match against Athletic Club tomorrow. According to some sources, Xavi was highly impressed by the team’s performance, particularly with the outstanding contributions of 16-year olds Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi. He was extremely pleased and delighted with the performance of the shark Ferran Torres, as evidenced by their celebratory hug after his first Barcelona hattrick.
Strategically known for deploying pacy wingers and depending upon them to mess up the opponent’s defense, the manager’s tactics worked wonders after a really long time and he would be very satisfied with the result. He found the two 16-year-old technically gifted gems in this match and adding to that the already technical players like Joao Felix, Ferran Torres, Pedri, Gavi, Frenkie de Jong, Gundogan, and the new signing Vitor Roque, it just provides him with the best platform to take up pace and provide more emphatic displays to the fans in the upcoming matches.
With the emergence of so many young players and the team looking to gather back confidence, Xavi certainly can still aim for La Liga, the Copa del Ray, and the Champions League.
The Barca fans are already at their peak right now, and they should be, considering the form and confidence the team could take going forward, but it remains to be seen whether the team are able to replicate the performance again in the all-important Copa del Ray Round of 16 tie tomorrow.
Do you believe that Barcelona can once again accomplish great things, as President Laporta and Xavi claim? Let us know in the comments down below.
